Character does count

MILTON BRADLEY is far from the only professional athlete prone to temper tantrums. But he may become one of the few talented ones to lose his job because of them.

It was reported last week that police answered three domestic violence calls at Bradley’s home over the summer. Bradley reportedly choked his pregnant wife and injured her lip. He says these reports are exaggerated. But they come on the heels of Bradley’s irresponsible behavior in the clubhouse.

When second baseman Jeff Kent confronted him last month for not hustling, Bradley overreacted by accusing the veteran of being unable to deal with African Americans. Other on-field antics include slamming a plastic bottle at the feet of fans and hurling the contents of a ball bag onto the field after being ejected. The Dodger centerfielder has anger management issues.

Even before the reports of domestic violence, Dodger owner Frank McCourt seemed to be reassessing the need to keep jerks in the clubhouse. He acknowledged to Times sports columnist Bill Plaschke that he had underestimated the importance of character in assembling his team’s lineup.

Nobody expects Bradley, who is out of the lineup because of an injury, to still be on the roster next season.

At one level, McCourt’s revelations might not seem particularly deep -- didn’t all of our second-grade teachers tell us that character matters? But such epiphanies are unfortunately rare in the win-at-all-costs culture of professional sports. In the National Football League, the Philadelphia Eagles are the latest team to put up with the selfish antics of Terrell Owens, one of the game’s most talented wide receivers. Owens sat out part of training camp this summer because he wanted to renegotiate his seven-year, $49-million contract -- in only the second year of the deal. He grudgingly came back to play but refused to talk to his quarterback.

Why does anyone put up with such behavior?

Part of the answer, of course, is that Owens played a large role in getting the Eagles to the Super Bowl last season. Would McCourt be so resolute about the character issue if Bradley were in top form during a winning season for the Dodgers? This may bode ill for another high-profile bad boy in Los Angeles sports. If the Lakers continue to disappoint, owner Jerry Buss might have a McCourt-like epiphany about Kobe Bryant.

Sports franchises typically go through cycles of winning and losing, but longtime fan allegiance can’t be hurt by signing likable team players -- who wants to root for jerks in a losing season? And focusing on character doesn’t have to undermine performance. Probably no sports team has emphasized players’ character more in recent years than the New England Patriots. And they’ve won three of the last four Super Bowls.